CrossFireArabia
Sixteen days have passed since the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Palestinian factions was announced, yet the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is still dire. Nearly all forms of aid remain disrupted, and the urgent humanitarian needs of the Strip’s roughly 2.3 million residents have not been met.
Despite the ceasefire agreement announced on 19 January, which reduced the intensity of Israel’s daily bombing and killings, the humanitarian situation and living conditions have remained dire, with homes and infrastructure in all its forms severely destroyed.
Though the number of trucks entering the Gaza Strip has increased, the Euro-Med Monitor field team’s preliminary analysis of the volume and type of aid entering the enclave reveals that some of it is goods for merchants, i.e. non-essential items like snacks, which are not a priority for the people of the Strip. This is also true of other aid being delivered in trucks to international organisations within the Strip.
While hundreds of thousands of Gazans live in a tragic reality every day, the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is only getting worse. International commitments have not substantially alleviated the suffering of the populace, as urgent humanitarian concerns remain unresolved.
Since the ceasefire agreement went into effect, about 8,500 trucks have entered the Gaza Strip, but only about 35% of them have made it to the northern part of the Strip. Emergency needs are estimated to require around 1,000 trucks per day, but the number of trucks that are able to reach the enclave does not exceed half of this daily need.
Euro-Med Monitor reiterates that many of the trucks that have entered are carrying goods for merchants rather than humanitarian aid, and the majority of this aid is non-essential.
There is an urgent need for temporary shelter in the form of tents and mobile homes, which were supposed to be introduced under the ceasefire agreement, because hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have returned from the south to their residential areas in the northern part of the Gaza Valley. So far, however, Israel has not fulfilled its end of the deal.
The initial need was estimated to be around 120,000 tents, but only 9,500 tents—the majority of which are small and of poor quality—arrived in the Strip. This means that the tents that have arrived only make up eight percent of the total emergency need, and that hundreds of thousands of residents lack adequate temporary housing due to the widespread destruction of homes and buildings across the Strip, particularly in Rafah, the northern Gaza Strip, and large portions of Gaza City and Khan Younis.
The Strip is receiving half of the agreed-upon amount of fuel and petrol needed to run the basic services sector, which is 30 trucks per day on average due to the urgent need to support emergency services, and 14 trucks per day on average.
Sanitary wares, water pipes, solar power, and materials for home restoration are additional urgent needs that would allow families to remain in their partially destroyed homes while any of these are being installed.
About 85% of the water wells in the Strip have been destroyed, and Israel has forbidden the importation of supplies to repair and restore them. According to estimates from the Gaza Municipality and the northern Gaza Strip municipalities, 100 wells in the northern Gaza Valley need to be restored and repaired immediately; none have been fixed thus far.
It is imperative that municipalities and service sectors install solar panels, water tanks, water extensions, and submersible pumps for water wells, plus electricity batteries, in order to meet the basic needs of people living in alternative housing areas.
To date, no suitable tools or systems have been permitted to clear debris, recover victims’ bodies, clear streets, or remove deteriorating structures that endanger the lives of locals in the Gaza Strip.
While only four pieces of equipment, including small ones, were brought in to repair the Rafah border crossing and the road leading to it, the ceasefire included an agreement to provide 100 pieces of various heavy equipment to open streets and retrieve bodies.
Regarding medical devices and equipment, none of the equipment needed to resume hospital operations, such as MRI machines, has arrived in the Gaza Strip. This is especially true for Al-Shifa Hospital, whose buildings and equipment were extensively destroyed and set on fire by the Israeli occupation army. Meanwhile, the European Hospital urgently needs to replace its malfunctioning MRI machine, and Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis has yet to receive one. The same applies to radiology equipment, as the Strip lacks all X-ray and C-Arm devices. Since their generators were destroyed or burned during the genocide, hospitals now require generators as well.
The lack of these essential components represents the parties’ inability to protect and care for those impacted by Israel’s genocide over a period of more than 15 months. This exacerbates civilian suffering, as does the delayed delivery of urgent humanitarian aid that the people are demanding.
The international community and mediators in the ceasefire agreement must act immediately and urgently to meet urgent humanitarian needs; activate support and assistance mechanisms to ensure the safety and dignity of hundreds of thousands of affected individuals; and ensure strict monitoring and independent investigations to secure the implementation of humanitarian and legal obligations, with the sole goal of protecting civilians and guaranteeing their basic rights.
Taking the needs of women, children, and members of the most vulnerable groups into account, swift action must be taken to appropriately address the immediate needs of the people living in the Strip. This includes providing adequate temporary housing; ensuring the entry and access of all humanitarian aid; and removing any restrictions or blockades that impede the provision of relief to the civilian population, including hospital services and access to water and education. Additionally, social and psychological support must be provided to address the devastating psychological effects of the genocide, particularly on children and survivors of direct attacks.
The humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip is worsening due to the international community’s ongoing inaction and indifference to the delayed entry of basic necessities. The international community must instead stand together and take immediate action to guarantee that aid reaches those in need as soon as possible.
